German car company BMW is rolling out humanoid robots in another one of their factories to help build electric vehicles.
The manufacturer tested out the cutting-edge robots at their facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and is now expanding them to their location in Leipzig, Germany, according to an April 20 report from Fox News.
BMW announced the project for the first time in February, revealing that they would test the “Physical AI” robots — enabled by Hexagon Robotics — in Leipzig, where the company makes electric vehicles.
“The project aims to integrate humanoid robotics into existing series production of cars and to explore further applications in the production of batteries and components,” the company said.
Milan Nedeljković, a member of BMW’s management board, said that “digitalisation improves the competitiveness of our production — here in Europe and worldwide.”
“The symbiosis of engineering expertise and artificial intelligence opens up entirely new possibilities in production,” he continued.
While car companies have long used robotics in their production processes — such as robotic arms that assemble specific parts — the use of Hexagon’s humanoid robots enables a more natural and adaptable integration.
A previous pilot by BMW used Figure 02 humanoid robots for positioning sheet metal on the BMW X2 production line, per Fox News.
Those robots helped with the construction of more than 30,000 cars.
Michael Nikolaides, who oversees BMW’s production network, said that piloting the robots helps the company integrate AI and enable the robots to learn in complex factory environments.
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